Real Italian Calzones

"This is real calzone, because there is no tomato sauce INSIDE of it! We eat it at least once a week. Have a bowl of tomato or spaghetti sauce on the table for people to top their calzone with, if desired."

Directions

To Make Dough: In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in water. Add the oil, sugar and salt; mix in 1 cup of the flour until smooth. Gradually stir in the rest of the flour, until dough is smooth and workable. Knead dough on a lightly floured surface for about 5 minutes, or until it is elastic. Lay dough in a bowl containing 1 teaspoon olive oil, then flip the dough, cover and let rise for 40 minutes, or until almost doubled.

To Make Filling: While dough is rising, combine the ricotta cheese, Cheddar cheese, pepperoni, mushrooms and basil leaves in a large bowl. Mix well, cover bowl and refrigerate to chill.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).

When dough is ready, punch it down and separate it into 2 equal parts. Roll parts out into thin circles on a lightly floured surface. Fill each circle with 1/2 of the cheese/meat filling and fold over, securing edges by folding in and pressing with a fork. Brush the top of each calzone with egg and place on a lightly greased cookie sheet.

Most Helpful Positive Review

Nov 05, 2003

This was a good recipe. It does need a few adjustments. The recipe should state that the yeast should proof first. I dissolved the sugar in the water with the yeast and let it sit for ten minutes. I didn't use the same toppings, I used ground ham, spinach, a little mozarella, mushrooms and of course ricotta, which makes a "real Italian Calzone, and for a little extra yum, a dash or two of Italian dressing, but the dough was great for calzone. Very chewy and beautiful coloring. I made 4 calzones out of this but cut them in half, so next time I will make 8 small ones. Also it took only 20 minutes when I used my pizza stone, so time should be adjusted for the size of individual servings.

Most Helpful Critical Review

Dec 01, 2009

Having owned an Italian restaurant/Pizzeria at one time, I can tell you: NO ITALIAN WOULD BE CAUGHT DEAD USING CHEDDAR CHEESE....AND NEVER, NEVER IN CALZONE. ONLY PURE RICOTTA CHEESE! Use one and one half cups of ricotta mixed with dash of pepper, salt, Italian sausage (or pepperoni is acceptable), one egg and dash of parsley and grated parmesan cheese. For those of you who don't want to be bothered making dough from scratch....buy the frozen bread dough. Just as good!

I tried halving the recipe, as so many thought these were quite large, and made mini calzones for appitizers. I also added some green pepper and olives. Delish! My only change would be to prick the tops with a fork before baking, as they all exploded a bit!!Thanks for the recipe!!

Outstanding! Despite having a lot of cooking experience, I had never made pizza dough from scratch or a homemade calzone before tonight.
What I did differently:
Dough: slightly more yeast (Hodgson Mill All Natural Active Dry Yeast which was a 5/16 oz. pack); divided in four; rolled to 9" cirlcles
Filling: used Italian 4-cheese blend; mixed and chilled cheeses, but not toppings; topped with different approximately 1 1/2 cups combined diced pepperoni, diced ham, canned mushrooms, canned and drained diced tomatoes, diced onions, and diced green peppers.
Hints: use a lightly floured silicone baking mat - this lets you easily fold half the dough over the filling and transfer to baking sheet; use a small roller for small dough formations; spread your cheese down the middle and work toward one side of the round, adding toppings in the same manner; leave at least a half inch margin on side with filling; lightly brush that half's edge with some of the beaten egg to make sealing the edges easy; serve with a dipping sauce (like "Way Easy Pizza Sauce/Bread Stick Dip" also featured on allrecipes.com - see my review for how I doctored that to fit my tastes and better match my alterations to this calzone recipe).
Bottom Line: This was really easy and worth the time required. Adapt to your own taste, keeping in mind the total volume of the filling.

Excellent recipe. Very easy if you let your bread machine do the work. I set mine on dough cycle thru 2nd rise. Instead of Cheddar, I use a blend of Mozzarella and Romano, add green onions and black olives. Yummy! Thanks for sharing this great recipe, Jenny. It has become a favorite of my friends and family!

I'll echo other reviewers in esteeming this dough recipe - it cooks to perfection - & that you can fill to your liking. My filling consisted of 1 cooked/cubed chic breast, oregano, cheddar & mozz cheeses, salt, pepper, garlic powder and I went ahead & put sauce on the INSIDE - sorry! The recipe made what I consider 4 large, very stuffed calzones. I guess I overstuffed but they turned out delicious and didn't overflow. Thanks for this idea!

To quote my husband, "This is the best calzone I've ever had!" I used Italian seasoning instead of the basil and cheddar and mozzarella instead of just chedder. I was very pleased to find this recipe because it's so hard to find a true Italian Calzone in my area. THANKS SO MUCH FOR SHARING!

*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.

**Nutrient information is not available for all ingredients. Amount is based on available nutrient data.

(-)Information is not currently available for this nutrient. If you are following a medically restrictive diet, please consult your doctor or registered dietitian before preparing this recipe for personal consumption.